[Book Club]: August Book List

Well, the time has come yet again for us to dive into the world of books. In a short time, schools will open and classes will start (not to mention all the major sports). So, let's see what's made the list this time.

Good Grief : A Novel by Lolly WinstonStalin : The Court of the Red Tsar by Simon Sebag MontefioreHidden Prey by John SandfordSlightly Sinful by Mary BaloghKiss of the Night by Sherrilyn KenyonCaddy For Life : The Bruce Edwards Story by John FeinsteinThe Official Handbook of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy by Mark W. SmithEndgame: The Blueprint for Victory in the War on Terror by Thomas McInerney, Paul E. Vallely Affirmative Action Around the World: An Empirical Study by Thomas Sowell The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy FowlerThe Kalahari Typing School for Men (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency) by Alexander McCall SmithThe Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of the Forgotten Colony That Shaped America by Russell Shorto Windrider's Oath by David Weber Rise of the Vulcans: The History of Bush's War Cabinet by Jim Mann, James Mann A Loving Scoundrel: A Malory Novel by Johanna LindseyBroken Dishes by Earlene FowlerSummer of the Sea Serpent (Magic Tree House #31) by Mary Pope Osborne, Sal MurdoccaThe Ribbajack by Brian JacquesThe Ironwood Tree (The Spiderwick Chronicles, Book 4) by Tony Diterlizzi, Holly BlackThe Master Quilter: An Elm Creek Quilts Novel (ELM Creek Quilts) by Jennifer ChiaveriniIn the Company of Soldiers: A Chronicle of Combat by Rick AtkinsonFlames and Fire from Africa, Poems by Macauley Oluseyi Akinbami (contact the author maccaulay_usa@yahoo.co.uk)

Just so you get a taste of the books above, I am also posting an editorial review of the first few books in the following post. Enjoy! I may also add more of the reviews as the days go on.

Amazon.com
Some widows face their loss with denial. Sophie Stanton's reaction is one of pure bafflement. "How can I be a widow?" Sophie asks at the opening of Lolly Winston's sweet debut novel, Good Grief. "I'm only thirty-six. I just got used to the idea of being married." Sophie's young widowhood forces her to do all kinds of crazy things--drive her car through her garage door, for instance. That's on one of the rare occasions when she bothers to get out of bed. The Christmas season especially terrifies her: "I must write a memo to the Minister of Happier Days requesting that the holidays be cancelled this year." But widowhood also forces her to do something very sane. After the death of her computer programmer husband, she reexamines her life as a public relations agent in money-obsessed Silicon Valley. Sophie decides to ease her grief, or at least her loneliness, by moving in with her best friend Ruth in Ashland, Oregon. But it's her difficult relationship with psycho teen punker Crystal, to whom she becomes a Big Sister, that mysteriously brings her at least a few steps out of her grief. Winston allows Sophie life after widowhood: The novel almost indiscernibly turns into a gentle romantic comedy and a quirky portrait of life in an artsy small town. At all stops on her journey from widow to survivor, Sophie is a lively, crabby, delightfully imperfect character. --Claire Dederer